Kennedy Sets September Deadline to Uncover Autism Causes Amid Controversy 
SpaceX’s Starship Completes 11th Test Flight, Paving Way for Moon and Mars Missions 
Astronomers have discovered another puzzling interstellar object − this third one is big, bright and fast 
NASA Astronauts Wilmore and Williams Recover After Boeing Starliner Delay 
Eli Lilly’s Inluriyo Gains FDA Approval for Advanced Breast Cancer Treatment 
Trump Administration to Launch Autism Initiatives Targeting Acetaminophen Use and New Treatment Options 
Is space worth the cost? Accounting experts say its value can’t be found in spreadsheets 
Trump and Merck KGaA Partner to Slash IVF Drug Costs and Expand Fertility Coverage 
NASA Cuts Boeing Starliner Missions as SpaceX Pulls Ahead 
Blue Origin’s New Glenn Achieves Breakthrough Success With First NASA Mission 
Trump Signs Executive Order to Boost AI Research in Childhood Cancer 
SpaceX Starship Test Flight Reaches New Heights but Ends in Setback 
Lost in space: MethaneSat failed just as NZ was to take over mission control – here’s what we need to know now 
FDA Pilot Program Eases Rules for Nicotine Pouch Makers 
CDC Vaccine Review Sparks Controversy Over Thimerosal Study Citation 
US space agency NASA has spotted another asteroid traveling towards the Earth’s orbit. It now bears wondering if the asteroid will make an unexpected entry into Earth any time soon.
Express reports that NASA’s asteroid trackers spotted a space rock, now referred to as 2020 DG1, traveling towards Earth at a speed of 53, 731 miles per hour on a close approach trajectory. Aside from being classified as a Near-Earth Object or NEO, DG1 is predicted to approach the planet by the 21st of February. The space rock measures between 108 feet to 242 feet in diameter, making it a relatively small rock that could only cause damage to the local area it hits if it ever makes it through the Earth’s atmosphere as smaller asteroids usually end up burning up when in contact with the atmosphere.
Asteroids as large as one kilometer in diameter or more would be classified as Potentially Hazardous Objects or PHOs, and are the ones that could cause damage on a global scale.
Fortunately, NASA says that DG1 will only pass by Earth when it arrives on Friday. It will only get as close as 0.03512 astronomical units to Earth. In human terms, this is equivalent to 5.25 million kilometers, which is still very far away, but close enough that space agencies will notice their distance.
Last January, the agency’s Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System spotted a space rock that passed by the planet at a much closer distance. Based in Hawaii, ATLAS found that the asteroid, now referred to as 2020 BX12 by the Arecibo Observatory, got as close as 302,000 kilometers, and thus classified it as a Potentially Hazardous Object or PHO.
Researchers from the observatory noticed that this space rock was part of a binary asteroid system, which means one asteroid is orbited by another asteroid. In this case, the main asteroid measures 165 meters in diameter, while the rock that orbits it is smaller, measuring 70 meters in diameter. The researchers also found that these two asteroids have an orbiting time of 45 to 50 hours.
The Planetary Science Radar Group, the scientists running the Arecibo Observatory, announced that even when BX12 can get closer to the planet than the Moon, it does not pose danger at this time and is currently moving away from the Earth.
